


The Story of Our Lives

by sstwinz



Category: Downton Abbey
Genre: Angst, Gen, One Shot, Sad, Short
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-02
Updated: 2018-03-02
Packaged: 2019-03-26 02:59:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 400
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13848648
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sstwinz/pseuds/sstwinz
Summary: Mary finds Tom grieving over his lost love. Tragedy seems to be the story of their lives.This story is based on the song "Story of My Life" from the Downton Abbey Soundtrack!Originally written in 2014!





	The Story of Our Lives

Tom sat with his head in his hands, letting out soft sobs, when the door creaked open. Mary stepped into the room and closed the door quietly. She certainly hadn't expected him to recover already after Sybil's death only a few days ago, but it was always a bit sad to see him so depressed. She gently eased herself into a seat next to the grieving man, trying not to startle him.

Alerted by the noise, Tom looked up, sniffed, and wiped his eyes before letting out a strangled sounding laugh. "I'm sorry you have to see me like this."

"Oh, no, don't be sorry," she replied, looking at Tom with sympathy.

When Tom next spoke, his voice was choked. "It's just... I never really expected any of this to happen. Meeting her, falling in love, getting married. Sometimes things just work out perfectly. But it never really lasts, does it?"

He let out another false laugh, wiping his eyes again with the back of his sleeve. "It's kind of funny, isn't it? We never really intend for life to happen. It just passes by without us even noticing. And then, before you know it, it's gone. Just like that. And everything you knew, everything you cherished, everything you  _ loved  _ is gone with it. All those moments you missed because you were so busy with other things, all that time you wasted when you could have been with them, maybe held their hand that last time, or seen their rosy cheeks, or felt their heart beating as you held them.

"I just... Sybil was  _ everything  _ to me. My day, my night. And now she's gone, and she's never coming back. And I don't really know what I'm going to do now without her."

Mary gave Tom a sorrowful look. She tried to imagine herself in the same situation, with Matthew dead, and it filled her with such misery that it was physically painful. Her eyes welled up with tears, and she reached for the hand of her former chauffeur. He took it and looked back into her eyes, his own still glistening.

"Isn't that just the story of our lives?" she said quietly, and his grip tightened on her hand as the two both started to cry quietly, one over lost love and the other still unknowing that their love, although not lost yet, was slowly running out of time.


End file.
